The €5,300 buy-in PokerStars European Poker Tour (EPT) Barcelona Principal Occasion kicked off Sunday at On line casino Barcelona, and there was a little bit of historical past in play at the beginning of the most important poker event.
John Duthie, the poker legend liable for creating what has develop into one of many premier poker excursions on this planet, took his seat for the Day 1a session. The primary participant to have ever gained an occasion on the tour constructed by Duthie, Alexander Stevic, can also be competing within the Principal Occasion.
First Winner Remembers the Good Outdated Days
Stevic, who spoke with PokerNews on the primary break of Day 1a, gained the EPT Barcelona Open in 2004 for €80,000. The event on the time price simply €1,000 to enter and attracted 229 gamers, far fewer than what the upper buy-in model brings in yearly lately.
“Profitable the primary one is cool in a means as a result of you’ll at all times be the primary. However, if I might select, I’d in all probability select the third of the fourth one as a result of I’d have gained like one million and a half,” Stevic joked.
Stevic could not decide and select the EPT occasion he gained. His victory in 2004 was for a a lot smaller quantity than, as he talked about, the 2005 EPT Barcelona winner, Jan Boubli, who took house €426,000. Final 12 months’s victor within the now €5,300 buy-in EPT Barcelona Principal Occasion, Simon Wiciak, made €1,134,375. However Stevic remains to be happy with being an EPT champion and has nice reminiscences of that big day.
“It was very totally different 20 years in the past than taking part in a event at this time, that I keep in mind,” Stevic stated about his recollection of profitable the primary EPT. “As a result of everybody was speaking to one another on the desk, it was largely execs in that event, truly, as a result of it was so early on that many of the execs traveled again then. However, yeah, everybody was speaking. Now, they’ve performed two ranges, two hours, and nobody has stated one phrase.”
“I imply, actually, not one phrase.”
The inaugural EPT champion, regardless of his displeasure with the shortage of banter on the poker tables lately, stated he is nonetheless obsessed with poker and his love for the sport has by no means diminished. However he additionally acknowledges the sport is harder in 2024 than it was in 2004.
“The talent, the gamers at this time, or the professionals at this time is way greater. It is a lot tougher. Right this moment, I would say it is a lot harder,” Stevic stated.
The sport and the European Poker Tour has grown virtually exponentially previously 20 years. PokerStars took over the tour in 2011 and it is grown to heights Stevic did not anticipate when he gained the EPT Barcelona Open.
“I do not suppose anybody did again then,” Stevic answered when requested if he noticed in 2004 the EPT someday changing into so large. “However tv helped so much, and on-line helped so much. It was the start of every part, actually. However I did not suppose it could develop to this.”
Stevic, who shared a dialog on break with Duthie, obtained off to a tough begin within the Principal Occasion on Sunday. He stated he made an enormous fold in a giant pot however by no means noticed his opponent’s playing cards. The Swedish poker participant was all the way down to lower than half his beginning stack on the time of publishing.
Observe PokerNews Reside Protection of the EPT Barcelona Principal Occasion
.jpg?w=75&resize=75,75&ssl=1 "WATCH: Andrew Robl Gets Kings Cracked Twice For Million")
